Medication Treatment: Methadone

What is Methadone?1

Methadone is a type of opioid that acts like an agonist in the brain.

Methadone is different from opioids such as heroin or oxycodone, because instead of rapidly switching on physical changes and reactions, it activates opioid receptors in the brain very slowly over a long period of time which allows a person to stop going into withdrawal.

Because methadone activates opioid receptors so slowly, it does not activate the rewarding/highly pleasurable sensations as strongly as other opioids do. This means that methadone has less risk for overuse compared to heroin or oxycodone.

Methadone does have more risk for overuse and physical side effects than buprenorphine, which is why it is carefully administered and regulated by the government.1

Unlike buprenorphine and naltrexone, a person does not have to be in withdrawal or opioid free to start methadone, it can be safely started at low doses at any time.1

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